Portishead - Dummy (Review: Dan)

I don't know what I want to say about this album. I was intrigued to listen just because I wanted to put the music to this scene Alex described. After hearing this, I can agree that watching that must have been a strange experience.

I like Dummy. I was really taken aback when I listened to it for the first time on Spotify. I was blown away by it. Beth Gibbons vocals are mesmerising, and I found myself in what was like some sort of trance when I first listened. The actual beats and music to each song is also very good, and has this strange way of captivating my entire attention. Even now, listening to it while I write, I'm finding it hard to concentrate on anything but the music. That's what I enjoy about hip-hop - the music. When I listened to CunninLynguists' Strange Journey, I liked the music but I just couldn't tolerate the rapping. So by ditching the rapping and replacing it with a very good vocalist is almost perfect for me.

There are negative sides to this album, though. There are parts in the album which become a little intolerable, and I don't think I could listen to the album for long stretches of time. Not without wanting to kill myself. I think Beth Gibbon's singing is what does it. In songs like Biscuit especially, the beat is sort of slow, while Beth drags out words in a wail that is so...well, just...wail-y. I feel so depressed when I listen to it. Which isn't good.
I'd also like to point out that whoever is singing on Glory Box can't be the same as before. Certainly not in the first and last few lines. It sounds more like Macy Gray.

It's hard to draw a conclusion on this album. I think it's technically brilliant - near perfect. But I feel that unless I spent the rest of my days as a crack addict, I won't be able to enjoy this too much.

I think all in all it seems a little bit too intense for me to handle. I appreciate its brilliance, and I really like it, but I'm going to give it a 3/5, for the album as a whole.

Favourite Tracks:
[1]Mysterons
[2]Sour Times
[4]It Could Be Sweet
[8]Roads

Dan

Meshuggah - ObZen (2008)

Well, for weeks of uploading this has alway, from the very beginning been on my "to upload" list. I first discovered this band wading through a guitar forum, trying to find new bands above the mass of 4chan overflow and 13 year old sexual health talk. It was tough but I stumbled across a topic dedicated to 7/8 string electric guitars (its relevance will become apparent the moment you press play) inside were whispers of a band said to have created some of the heaviest songs alive without succuming to the ultra-slow pace of drone metal.

After some time researching I eventually gathered the courage to listen to one of the most critically acclaimed metal songs this decade. "Bleed". It changed the way I thought about music and what could actually be achieved technically. No amount of watching a man "shred his axe" on youtube could match the sheer machine like precision of this album.

Please, enjoy.

Combustion
Electric Red
Bleed
Lethargica
obZen
This Spiteful Snake
Pineal Gland Optics
Pravus
Dancers to a Discordant System

New Release Monday: Old Crows / Young Cardinals (Review: Dan)

I've been listening to this album all day now, and feel like I'm in a good position to review it accurately.

This album is very different to previous albums from Alexisonfire. As their 4th studio release, you can see the progression they've made from album to album, and it's actually fairly impressive. As far as talent goes, they've progressed a lot.

The album starts with the first of two title tracks 'Old Crows'. From the opening few notes it sounds like a far more mature band than what we hear from album 'Alexisonfire'. George Pettit has developed a new vocal style, which sounds a bit unusual. It's quite gravelly, and I'm not too sure I like it as much as the screaming he puts down on tracks like 'Accidents' from the album 'Watch Out!'. Vocals from Dallas Green are on top form, and they are very good throughout the album.

It's no coincidence that my favourite tracks on the album are the ones where Dallas provides more vocal input. Songs like 'No Rest' don't feature much of his singing, and is one of my least favourite on the record.

Musically, I think OC/YC is very good. The drumming from Jordan Hastings is very good, and compliments the guitar of Wade MacNeil really well. All of the guitar parts are really impressive on the album, and I think that due to the enormous increase in quality that OC/YC brings compared to their last album Crisis could see the band finding a lot of mainstream success.

I think that there is also a notable difference in Dallas' vocal contribution, as his style of singing appears to have changed. After releasing 'Bring me your love' for his solo side project City & Colour he appears to be singing in a far more 'folk' style. This is especially noticable in the song Born and Raised, which I'm fairly certain must be a song he wrote for a new City & Colour album.

All in all I think the album is good, but let down by George Pettit's unusual new vocal style. The Northern is good, as George shows that he hasn't forgotten how he used to 'sing'. But then around halfway through there is a switch and he returns to his new methods, if only briefly. Old Crows/Young Cardinals showcases massive progression from past releases, and as far as their ability goes I think they've produced an outstanding album.

I think there is a lot of promise from Alexisonfire to continue developing as musicians, and they remain the pioneering band of their respective genre.

4/5

Personal Highlights:
[3]Sons of Priviledge
[4]Born and Raised
[6]The Northern
[11]Burial

Dan

Funeral For a Friend - Hours (2005)

Funeral For a Friend are a band who I feel were definitely at their best in their early days. Recently they've toned down their sound and seem to be writing more media-friendly songs but the raw, heavier sound present on 'Hours' is definitely where their talents lie. This album has some outstanding riffs and some altogether hard-hitting songs with some decent vocals from Matt Davies.

Like Dan, this is by no means my favourite album ever but one which I think people may enjoy hence its inclusion on AlbumSwap this week.

1. All the Rage

2. Streetcar

3. Roses for the Dead

4. Hospitality

5. Drive

6. Monsters

7. History

8. Recovery

9. The End of Nothing

10. Alvarez

11. Sonny

Personal Highlights:

Streetcar

Roses for the Dead

Monsters

Sonny

Portishead - Dummy (1994)

The first time I heard this band was on a Dom Joly sketch. Two men, dressed as dogs battered the crap out of each other in a café, while unsuspecting people, innocently drinking their coffee tried to get to grips with the bizare scene which was unfolding around them. The film came from a black and white CCTV camera, and all the while Glory Box was playing in the background, filling the surreal silence. It was a fantastically odd thing to be watching, and I feel it sufficiently sums up the mood of this album. They call this Trip-Hop, and as much as I dislike the recent neccesity to put every band into its own little sub-genre, you can kind of understand why. It literally is like Hip-hop meets LSD fuled wailing. I suppose I should point out that there are elements of this album that even I find too odd to commit to liking. But all of the surreal sounds are worth it for the times when this album is truly beautiful.

Track list:
1. Mysterons
2. Sour Times
3. Strangers
4. It Could Be Sweet
5. Wandering Star
6. Numb
7. Roads
8. Pedestal
9. Biscuit
10. Glory Box

Personal Favourites:
Numb
Roads
Glory Box

Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures (1979)

I first bought this album nearly 2 years ago but not until recently have I fully appreciated how good it is. This is a very dark, slow and sad album and therefore I don't know if it'll be to everyone's taste, but I think everyone should listen to a Joy Division album at least once. A year after this release the lead singer Ian Curtis hanged himself after a struggle with depression, epilepsy and a tough marraige. Joy Division then reformed as the much more famous New Order.
What I like most about this album is the emotion found in Curtis' voice and lyrics and how well they fit in with the music, also note the drumming that sounds like a drum machine but is infact the band's human drummer Stephen Morris.

Choice Tracks:
Disorder
New Dawn Fades
She's Lost Control
Insight

New Release Monday: Alexisonfire - Old Crows / Young Cardinals

This is the 4th release from Canadian post-hardcore band Alexisonfire. From what I've heard of it, it seems like the band are heading into a new direction, and it sounds nothing like some of their older songs.
Hopefully it will be a good start to the New Release Monday albums. It's out today in HMV if you want to buy it, or I'm sure you can find it on Spotify or download it from rapidshare...

Track Listing:
[1]Old Crows
[2]Young Cardinals
[3]Sons of Priviledge
[4]Born and Raised
[5]No Rest
[6]The Northern
[7]Midnight Regulations
[8]Emerald Street
[9]Heading For The Sun
[10]Accept Crime
[11]Burial

Dan

Album Swap Return

Album Swap is now back from its short hiatus. Today, albums can be posted from Matt, Alex, Ben, Dan and Roshan. Today will also be the first time an album is posted from the 'New Release Monday' collection.
Albums will not be assigned to two other members, instead, anyone can review whichever album they choose. By next Monday, we will put new albums forward so long as each album has been reviewed at least once.

Dan

Enter Shikari Live at Heaven (Live Review: Dan)

I wasn't happy about this gig for a number of reasons.
a) I had to wake up at 5am to get into Oxford street for the 8am release of free wristbands.
b) Being a free gig, it meant that the crowd was full of losers.
c) Because we had to collect wristbands in the morning, it meant that I had to go into London twice. This cost me around £40. I'd prefer to have just paid £20 for the ticket...
d) The venue of choice was Heaven - notorious London gay bar. Not only was I uncomfortable being in their with the gay bar staff, I had to walk around Stevenage town during the day with a wristband on which was telling everyone that that is where I was going to be spending my evening. This was made worse by the fact that HMVs (the sponsor of the show) little slogan is 'Get closer to'. So I had a wristband on that said "Get closer to enter shikari at heaven". What had I gotten myself into?

So, on the train on the way back into London I was preparing for the worst night ever. When we got there I was even more fearful, as the crowd was rubbish. There were loads of people there in flat caps and backpacks and all sorts. Loads of people in the crowd cheered everytime a sound-tech guy came onstage, which you know is the sign of a 'well, I like that sorry you werent a winner song' kind of person.

The crowd were chanting "and still we will be here, standing like statues" and I got annoyed. A few of us went to get a drink, and then Ben insisted on asking where the toilets were.

We headed back into the stage area just before 7, when the band were due to start. Another thing I should add is, this show was a 'album release show and signing'. So none of us knew how many sogs this show would consist of. Some of us were considering the possibility that it could be just one or two songs, or it could be a full length set, or maybe they'd play the entire album through.

When the sound of Common Dreads began (familiar from the closing sounds of Take to the Skies) began playing, I became a little bit hopeful that they'd be playing the entire album through. This sounded like it would be great, as it would be the first chance to hear new songs like Gap in the Fence or Zzzonked.
The band walked onstage, and said hello. Rou announced "Here tonight I clock a thousand heads. Here to unite, through commom dreads.". Solidairty's synthetic intro then began, and Rory took a leap into the crowd and the chaos began to unfold.

The crowd were actually really energetic for the show, and they weren't as bad as I thought I knew they were going to be.
Having said that, there were some real wankers in the crowd, just running about throwing their fists around. I learned this the hard way, taking a fist to the face. I now have what looks like a carpet burn on my forehead. It's ok though, fans. I sorted him out.

After Solidarity, they played Step Up which is track three on the album. I was really pleased at this point, as it seemed that they were indeed going to play me their entire new album. Either way, this was the first chance I'd had to see them since I heard Common Dreads, so hearing these new songs was really nice as I knew the words this time.

Next, if my memory serves me rightly, however, they played Hectic. Though a great song, it's track number 14 so all hope was lost for the full album. Not too much of a problem though.

They then finished off their set which was, in fairness, composed of all new songs. Which was a really good thing, because it was refreshing to get away from Return to Energiser.

They did promise to play one old song though, so the crowd climbed up on each others shoulders and crawled over people to get to the mic and choose the song. My posse were all praying for Mothership, as they have appeared to have removed it from their live shows, much to every human being's disappointment. And, much to everyone's enjoyment, that was the song that was chosen. This was a great song, and it was nice to hear it again. Hopefully it taught Enter Shikari a lesson, and they'll start playing it again. I guess we'll find out at Reading.

Overall it was a very decent show, though relatively short at just over 45 minutes. I also noticed that I may have broken my personal sweat record, previously held by Pendulum at KoKo. This would normally be a good thing. But hot, sweaty boys in a gay bar made me want to get the fuck out of there all the more. So we did. Then we went home.

I'd give it a 5, but I felt really uncomfortable all night. 4.

Download Festival 2009 (Live Review: Dan)

This is going to be a long one. You've been warned. Sorry if it's not a good read, then you will have truly wasted your time. I'll throw some pictures in there to keep it colourful. Download Festival 2009 was a bit of an impulse purchase. I had an exam on the 12th so it was all a bit of a rush getting there aswell. After several mishaps including losing my phone in my bag for about an hour and then forgetting the tickets we finally got in, having missed the opening band of the day, Hollywood Undead (who got a 5/5 review from me when I saw them at Slam Dunk).
Then we had to deal with some incompetent security guards and try and get inside the arena. By the time we made it to the main stage, The Blackout were playing their final 4 songs.
This was the 8th time I've been present for a blackout set. I can safely say that I'm done with them now. They played some songs from the new album and Sean Smith tried his ridiculous "I want everyone to kneel down" stunt. It didn't really work, and he looked stupid. He also appears to have completed the transition into a raging homosexual, and he pranced around the stage in his tank top, black skinny jeans and black/pink trainers. Aswell as his pink microphone. Hopefully by the time I get to the end of this review I'll have a picture. In fairness to them, I still liked the old songs, just the way they performed them, embarassing themselves in the process, wasn't as good as it used to be. After The Blackout departed the stage we went and got a Hog Roast. It was marvellous. It cost £6, but that was ok. The Hog Roast stall also became the meeting point of the weekend. An overall success for Hog Roast. (This was before Muller Rice, but we'll get to that later).

We then went and caught the end of Staind. They seemed OK, but I'd never really listened to them before and so I didn't know what I was listening to. They were certainly better than The Blackout today, and the crowd appeared to enjoy them. My attention wasn't entirely focused on them anyway, as I was munching happily on my Hog Roast.
Next to grace the stage was Billy Talent. I was greatly looking forward to them, and this was to be the second time I saw them. They opened with This is How it Goes, track one on their debut album. It was very good, and I actually realised that they are very talented people. They played a good variety of songs from their albums I and II, aswell as a few from their upcoming release - III. I was really pleased with Billy Talent, but I was saddened by the fact they weren't particularly high up on the line up so they had a fairly short set. The set was really good I thought, and I couldn't think of how it could have been a whole lot better...But I did feel a bit let down from my expectations. I suppose I wanted a full length set, maybe in a more enclosed venue. Still, they were a nice way to get the day going properly. Next up was Killswitch Engage. I'm not personally a fan, but I know and like a few songs. So I was hoping for a good show, but didnt get my hopes up. The band all came on stage in their finest 'metal' outifts. Except for two members in particular. First was Adam Jonathan Dutkiewicz, guitarist. He was dressed in some sort of wrestling mask and a cape. He looked like a seven year old. Turns out he also acts like a seven year old, as he pranced around the stage making jokes about vaginas.
The other unusually dressed member was the singer, Howard Jones (pictured above). He was wearing a shirt and jeans, and looked a bit smart for the occasion. He sort of reminded me of my dad. But, image aside, the music ensued. For the first three songs of the set, to the fault of the sound guys who decided against doing a mic check, we couldn't hear Howard Jones. The crowd were shouting to have the mic turned up (or on) and eventually it was done. After this mess, the set was actually quite good. They played some really good songs, and it went down quite well with the crowd. Most of the audience interaction was done through Adam though, which was disappointing as he kept tying to be funny. I may purchase Killswitch Engage's album, which I think comes out in July. So I suppose they were successful.

Next up was the band that I bought my ticket for; Limp Bizkit. It was to be their first show in what must have been about 5 or 6 years. After a long pause, the band finally emerged, and the crowd went mental. Wes Borland was dressed in a bizarre black, white and red costume and Fred Durst had his trademark red cap on. Everyone one stage was wearing black. They opened with Space Odyssey and then went into Break Stuff, both of which went down a treat with everyone. They played a variety of their hits, and they had so much energy through the entire set. The crowd loved it, and gave such a great response to the band. Limp Bizkit provided me with some great entertainment and we decided to call it a day once they left.
We then got in the car and drove to McDonalds. We sat in McDonalds for about 2 hours. It was great fun. We discussed a variety of things. Not much of the things said were related in any way to Download Festival. Then we went home and got some sleep.

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At 8.45am I'd been lying in bed for a little while. I then looked a the time and realised we were meant to be leaving at 9. So I woke Matt up and we rushed over to Ben's. We got in the car, then set off for Download, round 2.
We decided that we were going to stay the night in the car, but on the way we passed a hotel so we gave them a ring. There's more of a story to that actually, which involved rock paper scissors and missing Five Finger Death Punch. It also includes us not being able to get a room at a hotel. It also includes a man asking us if we had any spare trainers.

We got to Download in time to see DevilDriver, who had quite a reputation from the last time they played. When they finally emerged onto stage I didn't see why, all I heard was a disgusting sound coming from some 'metal' old men. So we left.
We saw the band Hardcore Superstar leaving the second stage, where we decided to place ourselves for a while. We sat down against a rail while In Case of Fire set up their instruments. We had listened to their album on the journey to Donnington, so I was sort of looking forward to them.
After the sound of what the Irish jig to, the band emerged and I was already feeling a bit disappointed (because of the irish jig music). Then they started playing. The first thing that caught my attention was the singer/guitarist Steven Robinson. When he sings a long note, his tongue hangs out of his mouth. It makes him look a little bit retarded. After I snapped out of being immersed in his strange facial antics I glanced my eyes over to the other side of the stage, towards the bassist. The bassist, who can only be 17 or 18 years old, decided that he wanted to keep his mouth open and bounce around. Also like a retard. I never got a chance to look at the drummer. I can only imagine that he, too, has escaped from the lunatic asylum.
Musically, they are an OK band. The guitarist is actually very skilled, but I found myself very bored. They didn't do much on stage, and as a three-piece band the massive second stage felt empty. They didn't interact with the crowd at all, and I think they were just a bit nervous. I would also imagine they were a bit disappointed with the turn out. I'd say there were three rows of people in front of the stage watching them. If you can try and imagine that, it's pretty empty.

Staying at the second stage, it quickly filled up for the next act - Fightstar. 6 years now since Busted, I think the world is finally ready to accept them. The crowd were getting impatient for fightstar, and soon a huge bottle fight ensued. I'm sure you can find something similar on youtube if you want to get an idea of what it was like. The chaos finally stopped when Fightstar came on stage. They opened with Colours Bleed To Red - a song from their new album Be Human. I found this unusual, as it is neither track one, nor a single. And the record hasn't really been out long enough to be a fan favourite. Just looking over last fm quickly, it doesn't make the top 15 on the most played tracks in the last 6 months. So I found this unusual. It was very good though, so I guess that makes it OK. They then played a variety of songs from the album Grand Unification (their debut) and their latest Be Human. They also played from their first ever release, EP 'They liked you better when you were dead'. I thought that they must not like their sophomore album 'One Day Son...' as they weren't playing anything from it. I found this unusual also, as they had some fairly successful singles from it. However, for their short set maybe it was a good choice, as every song went down brilliantly with their crowd, and Charlie Simpson had everyone on their feet. Then for the final song they played Death Car, which was from their second album. I felt relieved.
Overall, the setlist was great and I don't think they could have asked for a better crowd reaction. Possibly a highlight of the festival for me. When I deciding scores for all the bands, in my mind I was going to give Fightstar a 4. But upon reflecting on the set, I think it's going to be a 5.

After Fightstar has finished and the hundreds of fans flooded out we headed out and met Matt at Hog Roast. I then bought a pizza and a Tango. Ben disappeared for a while talking to Vodafone so Matt and I made camp on the grass. We sat about and enjoyed the summer weather and got sunburnt. Whilst enjoying some pizza and listening to Down in the background (who I really enjoyed) we sat and watched our fellow festival-goers. There were a few people that had an effect in this interval; first was the high-five-fella as I shall refer to him as. Or maybe HFF, for short. As we were minding our own business a man dressed in a navy blue jacket approached me and asked for a double low. I provided. He then asked Matt for a single high. He got that too. He then made a joke about how his hands were sore from the power of our high fives. We laughed and he staggered off in search of more fives from a variety of heights. We watched him for a while, and he was just walking around the campsite getting high fives from everyone. We could even see him making the same joke he used on us (which wasn't funny then, but was actually quite funny now). When he encountered a sleeping person he was in a spot of trouble as they were unable to give him a high five. So he just high fived them on the head.
Then our attention turned to two people playing catch with a rugby ball. One of them, known by me as Samoa, seemed to start off pretty useless, but got significantly better upon the arival of new members. The other fixed member, known first as Curly Shithead, then Curly Colin, was dreadful. He had the worst throw, and couldn't catch. Everything about him was messy. His catch ability and his appearance. Eventually they were joined by a fairly long-term member 'Medicine Man' who was on his break from the Download Pharmacy. He was actually very good (as good as one can be at playing catch) and made a mockery of CC. He had clearly been practicing for moments like this. Eventually MM had to get back to work, and CC and Samoa were left to their own devices. Not long after, Ben returned and we set off towards the mainstage. Down had finished by this point.
Ben then made the outrageous suggestion that the ever tempting Muller Rice truck would be giving out its product for free. So we went ove there to prove him wrong. But he was right, so we got a free Muller Rice. Mine was strawberry flavoured, and was the best thing I'd eaten all weekend.

DragonForce emerged on stage, and blew us away with their face-melting metal. I am a liar.
DragonForce were embarrassingly bad. They were making me cringe for the entirety of their set. All they sing about is dragons, ninjas and mythological beasts. Also, everytime they were going to play a new song (which in fairness wasn't very often, as all of their songs are about 30 minutes long) the singer sung the title in his strange, high pitched voice.
"This song is called Battle of the Ninjaaaaaaaaaaaas" he wailed. I, personally, could have guessed.
The guitarists of DragonForce were all showing off the fact that they can play guitar, and doing all sorts of 'crazy' things. Just look at the above picture.
Matt made a very valid point that everything about DragonForce is just too high pitched. From the vocals to the guitar-work, everything makes a high-pitched sound that just can't be enjoyed.
The only good part of their set was when some nurses came on stage to give something to the guitarists (probably something that was really 'metal'. I can't say I was paying attention). Then a man ran up behind them with a sign saying "Tits Out". And they obliged. Then the band finished their only popular song (Through The Fire And The Flames, courtesy of Guitar Hero) and departed the stage. We went and got some more Muller Rice.

Next up was the mighty DnB legends Pendulum. I saw them at the iTunes Festival 2008 and they became my favourite live band from that show (they have since been replaced by Alexisonfire at the Borderline. Who have also been replaced. But we'll get there). I then caught a tiny bit of their set at Reading 2008, but left due to how overcrowded it was.
Today I was ready to be blown away again, but the time of day worried me. The sun was at a point where it was roasting my neck and making the sky very bright. Pendulum burst onto stage with a very high-tec light system and their high-tec instruments. The lights seemed a bit wasted though, as it just wasn't dark enough for the right effect. The bass made the ground shake and I was really excited when they started playing Showdown. The crowd started jumping and everyone was really into it. Everyone was having fun and you could see that the band were too.
After the first song, Ben Mount (front man, MC) was bleeding from his ear. Either he hadn't noticed, or he didn't care. Either of these two reasons made me appreciate him a little bit more. The fact that he will be on stage, entertaining thousands of people with blood running down his face made me appreciate his passion for what he does.
The set was great, it was full of energy and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. My only complaint was that the setting didn't seem right. In a big, dark venue it would have been near perfect. The trampled on grass and blazing sun, combined with Pendulum and their lights just didn't give me the same satisfaction I felt when I left KoKo on that July night last year.
We went and got another Muller Rice.

Next up was Marilyn Manson. I've always been a bit scared of Marilyn Manson. His image disgusts me. His music disgusts me even more. However, I was prepared to face my fear and see him perform.
I've been reading a lot about him lately. I sort of thought that maybe he's just a bit misunderstood. Maybe we shouldn't blame him for all these bad things.
Yes we fucking should.
He staggered on stage, a complete mess, and performed the most awful song I've ever heard in my life. Then he walked to the back of the stage, had his make up adjusted and came back on. Then repeated the process. Stumbling around, rolling on the floor and making noises that can't have really been his songs into the microphone. It was embarrassing. No one there was enjoying it. You could see the looks of disappointment and disgust on all the faces in the crowd. No one was happy about what was going on. Between each song he had to get someone to put a new hat on his head, or a coat on for him, or wipe the sweat from his face. He was being treated like royalty, yet all I could see was an overweight, old goth.
It was a really sorry affair, and I was astounded that this was the best he could do. He had gotten a very good spot at this year's festival, and in my opinion he wasted it. He was clearly really drunk, or on a lot of drugs. It was a shame really. But he was such an awful person. He never once spoke to the crowd, apart from when he wanted to know whether or not he should wear a coat. He never introduced himself. The time he spent between songs probably clocked up to about 15 minutes, which could have given his loving fans and additional 3 or 4 songs. Perhaps I should be grateful for the silence, as each song he performed was dreadful.
Now I know why people blame him for things, and I think he deserves it.
On what was his last song (whether it was meant to be his last song or not we will never know) he took a bottle to the head and swiftly left the stage for good. I have no doubt in saying that what he had just given me was the most dreadful and embarassing performance I've ever seen. This was made a hundred times worse because he played such an important role in this year's line up. I feel genuinely sorry for everyone involved in the booking and organisation of Download Festival, as Marilyn Manson effectively just stole their money.

The final band of our weekend, Slipknot, were preparing to come on. I was both excited and terrified, becuase of things I've read and just because of the reputation they have as one of the most brutal live bands there are. After a long wait, they finally came onstage. I didn't know the first few songs, but I was absolutely blown away by what I was hearing. It was incredible, and I felt ashamed of myself for not knowing it. They powered through a fantastically brutal set. Each of the nine members working together to put on more than just a live performance of their songs. When Shawn Crahan's drum stage was elevated and rotated and he threw huge metal barrels down to hit Mick Thompson, all the while Sid Wilson is hanging from this platform, thrashing around. I've never felt so entertained in my life. Meanwhile, I'm hearing Corey Taylor screaming to tens of thousands of people, whilst Joey Jordison performs some sensational drumming.
In December 2008 I was preparing to purchase a ticket for their tour, where they would be playing in the Hammersmith Appollo. Then when the ticket price was revealed at £40, I was horrified and decided against it. After witnessing them at the enomous donnington park, I can safely say that this was probably one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made.
The amount of energy they all have is remarkable, and they really put everything into what they do.
It's been 10 years since their debut album was released, and they are only now headlining download. When I was listening to the music, I simply couldn't understand how it took them so long to get this spot. They are without doubt one of the most unique and talented bands in the world right now, and all of their old songs sounded so good. I'm almost glad that they pulled out of Reading 2008, as seeing them and then watching Tenacious D would be almost criminal.

Slipknot were definitely the best band I've ever seen, and I can't wait until the chance I get to see them again (which is apparently "a lot sooner than [i] think").

It took us a while to get out of the park, and eventually we were back on the road headed home. We listened to three brilliant albums on the way home (Maroon 5 - Songs About Jane, Jimmy Eat World - Chase This Light, Placebo - Battle For The Sun), and I had a fantastic weekend.
I hope this wasn't too boring. It took me fucking hours to write.

EDIT: Just realised I forgot to do any scores.

The Blackout: 2/5
Staind: 3/5
Billy Talent: 4/5
Killswitch Engage: 3/5
Limp Bizkit: 5/5
DevilDriver: 1/5
In Case Of Fire: 2/5
Fightstar: 5/5
DragonForce: 1/5
Pendulum: 4/5
Marilyn Manson: 0/5
Slipknot: 5/5

Hog Roast: 5/5
Muller Rice: 5/5
Pizza place: 1/5

Download Festival 2009: Has to be 5 really as I saw some of the best bands of all time. Despite the fact there were some pretty bad acts, I had a brilliant weekend.


Dan.

Alexisonfire - Live at London Borderline (Live Review: Dan)

Last night I finally got to see Alexisonfire (though I'd seen them at Reading in 2008, I wanted to see a headline show). It was at the London Borderline, where I had been once before to see InMe this year. The venue was just as hot inside as I remembered it, but it was bearable for the night. We didn't go in until just before 9, when the band were due to start.

A few minutes after I got in the lights dimmed and the band walked onstage, where they kicked into the opening track of their second album 'Watch Out!'. This was unusual I thought. Usually a band opens with the first track of their latest album. In Alexisonfire's case I was expecting the first track from their 2007 album Crisis or maybe the opening track from their upcoming release. Still, I had no complaints as Accidents is one of my favourite songs.

The band played a healthy mix of old and new songs, which was very pleasing. I was worried that they would be showcasing their new songs and I would have to sit through a setlist where I knew only about 20% of the songs. Infact, they only played 3. 2 of which are on their myspace so I had heard them already.

The brilliant thing about Alexisonfire was the amount of energy they seemed to have. They really seemed to be putting everything into the show, and the crowd were the same. People were throwing themselves up onto the stage, where George Pettit (frontman) would grab them by the waist, flip them upside down and launch them into the crowd.

At recent events, I've been thinking to myself about why all of a sudden I've been standing at the sidelines from all of the action in the crowd, and so tonight, after a few drinks I was really up for getting involved.

Alexisonfire put a great show on, and they were especially good in the way that they also entertain the crowds, rather than standing still and just churning out songs. I think that we all have a lot to look forward to at their double set at Reading this year. Their new album 'Old Crows / Young Cardinals' is also out soon, and I think that it should be the album that takes the very first New Release Monday slot on the 22nd of June. Even though it comes out the 23rd...

5/5

Slam Dunk 2009 (Live Review: Dan)

Well, this would be my first album swap review in some time now. Today I am writing a review of my day out in Leeds on Sunday May 24. I hope you enjoy it.

We got to the Leeds University at around 3 o clock I suppose. It was very busy, and there seemed to be loads of different queues - none of which had any obvious purpose. So rather than joining one we sat on a wall and watched a ticket tout. I think we made a friend there.

After some time, people started to flood into the Student Union, so we hopped onto the end of a queue and got into the building. This is where the trouble really started.

Being from Knebworth, I am very unfamiliar with the layout of the Leeds University Student Union. Which I think is fair enough. Apparently the organisers don't find this acceptable, and once you arrive in the building your instructions are simply 'go'. So we had to literally hunt to find the stages - and there were six of them. By the time we had found the stage we were looking for, the second band of the day was just about to start. I was outraged. All the place needed were a few signs, or just some arrows would have done.

However, we had just arrived at the 'Fishing for Eskimo' stage. This was where I planned to be all day, so I didn't have to worry about hunting for other stages.
All Forgotten kicked off my first Slam Dunk experience, and it had been some time since I'd seen them. They played a pretty decent set, and it was quite refreshing in a way as I had been starting to forget how much I enjoyed them live. The crowd seemed pretty poor to me though, and I don't think All Forgotten had many fans present. This means that for all these 'hardcore' kids they have to swing their fists around until they've knocked out half the audience everytime the music changes or Johnathon Thorpe (Singer of All Forgotten) starts screaming. Once All Forgotten departed the stage, we headed towards the bar and took a seat. A wise move as The Urgency were up next.

We sat on our comfortable little sofa whilst The Urgency played out their set. I found myself very bored by the music, and I didn't like what I was hearing at all. Looking back though, I wish I had stayed down by the stage - I'm curious now as to how the crowd took to the music, and also wanted to know what they looked like. Perhaps it would be unfair to score The Urgency, as part of a live score has to be the experience. After they were done, though, we went back down to see Hollywood Undead.

I've only heard little bits of Hollywood Undead. I also find their popularity with this sort of scene unusual. After a bit of preparation, the stage was filled with smoke and then lit up in a red light. Six masked men then appeared on the stage (well, five, as one was already there). I liked their masks - it gave them an element of mystery, and it was exciting. These pretty scary masked men were putting on an incredible live show for me, and I didn't even want to know what they looked like - A problem I have always had with Slipknot.
The band had fantastic interaction with the crowd, and they really knew how to get everyone moving. All of a sudden, though, after I'd been having some fun in the crowd, I looked up in horror to see that they had all removed their masks. Now I look at six pretty normal looking men on the stage. I've got no problem with normal men...but I had lost a lot of the initial respect I had for the mysterious group.
Soon, member Charlie Scene found himself plunging into the crowd where he stayed for quite some time. His presence on stage didn't seem missed, and the band managed fine to play their songs and keep the crowd full of energy. When they departed the stage, I felt like the rest of the day could only go downhill. I enjoyed their set so much, I even bought their album on the way home.

We Are The Ocean sort of proved that to me. I used to be a very big fan of WATO, but after a while I got really bored of their music. I was hoping that today I would find that enjoyment I've been missing from them. They opened their set with a song I hadn't heard, I presumed it to be track one from their forthcoming album. They've gotten heavier since last time I heard them, and this new song sounded like the band were taking a step in a new direction, away from the post hardcore scene they usually find themselves at the centre of. A few old songs and I found myself bored of them again. I don't know why it is, perhaps it's the fact that I have been listening to different music lately, but I can't listen to We Are The Ocean anymore.
In fairness to them, I liked some of their new songs, so maybe their upcoming album will be something worth investing in. Unlikely, though, as I was forced to walk out of their set and head upstairs to find the merch room. On the way, we found a few more stages. Conveniently.

After a little break from the action, we headed back down to the Fishing for Eskimo stage to watch Silverstein. This was my second experience of Silverstein, only this time I knew a few more songs.
Silverstein played an immense set, there aren't many words I can use to describe it. Though I didn't know their newest or oldest songs, I did know their middle two albums which was good enough for me. Silverstein had a lot of fans in the room, and I had a great time watching what were certainly the band of the day.

After Silverstein it was that time of day; Headliner sets. There were six headliners of Slam Dunk festival, one for each stage. Obviously. This was a problem really, as I didn't want to settle with just one. So reluctantly I headed over to the Glamour Kills stage to see youmeatsix. We waited for a while, and eventually the room was packed full of kids and the band had a very impressive intro and kicked off their set with Jealous Minds Think Alike. 'Handy' I thought, as this is the only youmeatsix song I like. After this I dashed back to the Fishing For Eskimo stage to see the second half of The Blackout's set. I always love seeing The Blackout, there's something about the way they play that makes me keep coming back for more. However, I got there a little too early, and I was made to do the worst thing I've ever had to do. And this was the second time they've made me do this.
"I want everyone in the room to kneel down" announced Sean Smith. I shook my head in disappointment and got down onto my knees. The problem I have with this is that because every 10-year-old in the room hangs on Sean Smith's every word, if I didn't get onto my knees I would probably be kicked out of the venue. So, the whole room is on their knees, except for dictator Smith and his band of unimportant musicians. After a little bit of singing, Sean shouts "Get the fuck up!" which is our cue to, well, get the fuck up.
After this the set did improve, and I found that same love for the band that I usually have. Sean Smith also announced that they would be playing the Festival Republic stage at this year's Reading and Leeds festival. They ended their set on an old favourite of mine, 'I'm a Riot? You're a fucking Riot!' so I left a happy person. On the walk over to the Vans stage, though, I realised that I am starting to tire of the band. I purchased their new album on the way home though, so maybe I'll start to enjoy them some more.

I walked into the Vans stage to catch Anti Flag's set. This was my third time seeing Anti-Flag, and it's never been intentional. By that I mean that I have never gone to a gig to see Anti-Flag, they just happen to be around. Their music was good, the crowd loved them, another impressive show was going on from Anti-Flag. However, between songs they don't shut up about politics and God, and I couldn't handle it.
"Those Demons are in your heart, and by jeebers are we gonna get them out" Chris #2, Anti-Flag's bass player, told me as I walked out on him.
I headed back to the Glamour Kills stage, feeling pretty lost. I got back to see youmeatsix halfway through a song. I can't remember what it was, but I remember what came next. Josh Franceschi announced that they would be doing a cover of the incredible 'Killing in the name' by Rage Against The Machine. First off, this was a massive lie.
"Fuck you I won't do what you tell me" Josh says repeatedly through the breakdown of their song. He then stops and finishes his song. All he did there was have a crowd of 14 year olds ruin one of my favourite songs. It wasn't even a cover...

The band then went on to finish their set, and by the time it was over I felt disgusted. I don't like youmeatsix, I've seen them live before aswell and didn't like them then either. All this did was cement this.
The retarded Slam Dunk organisers then decided to shut the main doors and eject everyone out of the building via some narrow corridors. This was chaos, as all of the youmeatsix fans apparently had to get out of the building before each other, so were trying to push people to speed up the queue. What they were actually doing was slowing it down, as little gilrs fell over, grabbing their friends and forcing them to stop and help them because they had lost their mini mouse purse (or whatever the kids are into these days). After a good half an hour, I finally got out of the Leeds University.

Overall, I had a good day out. I saw a load of very decent sets from very decent bands, and the only real downside was the venue. Which was a shame, because all it needed was a bit of organisation.
To summarize, here are some scores:

All Forgotten: 4/5
The Urgency: n/a
Hollywood Undead: 5/5
We Are The Ocean: 2/5
Silverstein: 5/5
The Blackout: 4/5
Anti-Flag: 3/5
Youmeatsix: 1/5
Slam Dunk Festival 2009: 4/5